Exciting things have happened this week in the “history knowledge base.” We’ve linked up with the grandchildren of Alexander “Sandy” Moffat. Now, he and his wife Sally are as real as David and I. Up until now, they were was just “out there” as the original owner and his wife. Now, he’s the “Skipper” and she’s “Lally.” They had romance and adventure! And, a LOT of kids!

Some of the things we’ve learned: He was an early and active member of the Cruising Club of America (CCA).

His granddaughter, Tracy, in Massachusetts told me about the CCA adventures with groups of 20 or so boats sailing to little-explored waters with limited opportunity for provisioning. In my mind’s eye, I can see Skipper “the explorer.” And, I understand more about why Mahdee had the capacity for 800 lbs of ice in the icebox, 500 lbs of coal in the hopper, and 2 large propane cylinders for her original duel-fuel galley stove. Then, I catch an email from a grandson, Tom, in Hawaii with so many beautiful words…I learn that my newfound hero was a man I’d have wanted to know: “He was a gentleman, a fine host, loved his cocktails, played the accordion after dinner, and had the devotion of his friends and most of the east coast yachting establishment (not to mention his grandchildren).” Now, I’m imagining Skipper and Lolly as host and hostess of elegant dinner parties at home in NYC as well as festive family times on board Mahdee in the summers.

I know a few of the grandchildren have logged into the blog—I invite them to please post their comments here for our family and friends to share. We would love to hear more about your memories of the Skipper and Lally.

A teaser for my next History Topic posting: They (the grandkids) know where the name “Mahdee” came from! I’ll share in a later posting.

The following image is of the (now public) 1930 US census record page with the Moffat family listed.

Ok, its “Christmas after Christmas” for me! I just went to Alibris.com and purchased copies of three out-of-print books that were written by Mahdee’s first owner, Alexander “Sandy” White Moffat. They’ll be showing up in the mail soon 🙂

The first one, written in 1928, must have been good since it has been reprinted several time between then and 1977. The title is awesome:

The Galley Guide: A Purely Humanitarian Work Planned Out of Consideration for Those Who Cruise on Water and for Their Digestive Apparatus, Upon Which, After All, Success or Failure Largely Depends.

This title sounds like something David’s Dad would write in regards to Quetico canoe trip provisioning…

I can’t wait to get it. Reviews of the book state that it is written in common language and includes some references to cooking methods and equipment used on yachts in the late 1920s. This should go wonderfully in Mahdee’s galley along with my 1931 version of the Joy of Cooking. See the galley as designed by Sandy Moffat:

The other books I’ve ordered were written by Mr. Moffat in the 1970’s it seems. The first, Maverick Navy, is about his experiences as a Navy Reserve Ensign during WWI. The publishers notes are that it is “a narrative memoir of the little-known and largely forgotten anti-submarine warfare in World War I ~ a moving story of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and adventure at sea.” A review by the Daily Press, Newport News, Virginia follows: MAVERICK NAVY is “a vivid narrative of Captain Moffat’s adventures while in command of Subchaser No. 143 during World War I. With the patriotic but naive innocence which so characterized the period and ‘with experience only in small sailing yachts in coastwise cruising’ he was catapulted, in 1917, into the Navy, the real and earnest blue water fighting Navy. With apparent total recall, 85-year-old former U.S. Naval Reserve officer ‘Sandy’ Moffat has written a fascinating, humorous account of his experiences as an ensign commander of U.S. Navy patrol boats, both in American and European waters, in World War I. This book performs a fine service in recalling a little-known but useful activity by volunteers which contributed its part to the Allied victory at sea. The story is eminently refreshing and readable as well.”

His sequel, A Navy Maverick Comes of Age, 1939-1945 is described as “A spirited account of one man’s varied service in the defense of New England’s shoreline during World War II–the Inshore Patrol, minesweeping, and the surrender of German U-Boats in Northeast waters.”

Sounds like good intrigue.

So, Mahdee’s library is growing…

We are lucky to have a complete set of Mahdee’s drawings and specification. We have already posted some of the interesting details on the Mahdee website. Clink in the link below to view and read about them.

Drawings and Specs